Chapter 149: Blood for Blood
“Where’d you get those clothes?”
Karl asked, giving a once-over as I stood dressed in fresh, clean attire.
I gestured toward the carriage.
“I found so that were in decent condition. Go ahead and change.”
“Found? Did you rob a rchant caravan or sothing?”
“It wasn’t . Soone else already did the looting.”
While searching the area around the Korun River, I had co across an abandoned carriage by a stream.
The horses had likely wandered there to drink water, but there were no people—only bloodstains everywhere.
“No bodies?”
“No sign of them. I waited for a while, but nobody showed up. So I just took it.”
The truth was, there wasn’t just one abandoned carriage—there were several.
And there were plenty of bodies, too.
But I didn’t bother telling my companions where I had found the clothes, who the victims were, or why they had been attacked.
They’d find out eventually.
Clop, clop, clop—
The carriage rolled slowly along a flat road.
Karl, now dressed in rchant clothes, sat beside on the driver’s bench.
Lochter had donned what looked like a simple farr’s outfit.
The problem, however, was Lily.
From inside the carriage, she tapped the wall with an annoyed expression, holding up a handful of clothes.
The small window connecting the driver’s seat to the carriage opened, and Lily thrust the garnts out with a sulky look.
“None of these are to my liking.”
“You’ll still need to change.”
“Why? I’ve been fine wearing this.”
“That outfit is no longer appropriate.”
The clothes Lily wore were the ceremonial attire of Shamans, a symbol of authority she had previously used as a cheat code within the Blyer Territory.
But now that Kal Blazer was aware of our disguises, that outfit would be nothing but a liability—a beacon marking our location.
He’d undoubtedly issue orders to capture anyone in shamanic robes first.
“So what? It has nothing to do with .”
Oh, it absolutely does.
Explaining the situation to Lily was pointless; it wasn’t like she’d just say, “Oh, you’re right,” and change.
Convincing her required a different approach.
“Do you know noblewon?”
“Of course.”
“Aren’t you curious about their dresses?”
“Huh? Uh… yeah!”
“When we get to the city, I’ll buy you the prettiest one there.”
“Really?”
“And matching accessories, too. For that, I’ll need your asurents.”
Lily hesitated, then looked down at the clothes in her hands before nodding enthusiastically.
“Alright, I’ll wear one that fits perfectly!”
“I’ll make sure it’s tailored just right for you.”
“You promised!”
Grinning brightly, Lily retreated into the carriage, clutching the clothes.
Karl, who had been watching the exchange in stunned silence, gave a thumbs-up.
“You’re sothing else.”
“What are you talking about?”
“That woman isn’t just any woman; she’s the Witch of Ordor Forest, Lily Base. If she’d refused outright, what could we even do to force her?”
“What’s with the casual tone? Haven’t you been speaking comfortably to her?”
“She’s still not soone I feel at ease around. It’s only been three days, after all.”
Karl shook his head, as if trying to rid himself of lingering doubts.
Even he wasn’t entirely free of the prejudice surrounding Lily, fueled by the rumors spread by other sorcerers.
“Well, it’s not like those rumors were subtle.”
But that was only because they didn’t truly know her.
Once you understood her, you realized how simple she was to deal with.
She loved food, pretty things, and hated anything botherso.
As long as you kept those in mind, handling her wasn’t difficult.
In fact, that was one reason I had brought the carriage.
If she fell asleep while traveling on foot, we’d have to wait until she woke up.
With Keros always watching over her, no one could touch her.
Since I was already considering traveling with her for the foreseeable future, it was better to be prepared in advance.
A commotion ca from the carriage not long after.
“…Wait, what are you doing!?”
“Huh? What? I’m just changing clothes.”
“That’s not the issue—ugh!”
Lochter’s scream pierced the air.
A man who had taken dozens of stab wounds and been impaled by bolts without even groaning was now shrieking in horror.
He bolted from the carriage to the driver’s bench, his face a mix of shock and mortification.
That expression—could I ever witness sothing like it again?
As expected, Lily had worked her magic.
Monts later, Lily, now dressed in her new outfit, yelled at Lochter through the carriage wall.
“What kind of idiot opens the door while soone’s changing? It’s cold!”
“Don’t you understand the concept of modesty!?”
“Modesty? Why do I need that to change clothes? Are you going to dress yourself?”
“No, that’s not—!”
Having lived her whole life among witches in the Ordor Forest, Lily likely had no concept of etiquette between n and won.
It wasn’t her fault; there weren’t any n around to teach her.
For her, this was normal behavior, but to Lochter, who was bound by strict codes of propriety, it was an absolute shock.
“Just… be more careful next ti.”
“Why should I? Just close the door.”
Lily was soone you couldn’t reason with or overpower.
Realizing he had no chance of winning, Lochter opted to stay on the driver’s bench rather than return to the carriage.
“What the hell just happened?”
Karl, now sitting to my left, looked equally confused.
With the three of us—large n—cramd into the narrow driver’s seat, it felt suffocating.
If anything, this was more conspicuous than traveling separately.
After a while, Lochter held out his hand toward .
“I’ll drive.”
“I’m fine driving.”
“No, hand over the reins. I need to speak with Karl about Divine Nas.”
I sighed quietly and handed over the reins. I had hoped to stay on the driver’s bench, but it couldn’t be helped.
Since Karl needed to guide us to the small village where his group had been staying, he remained in his seat.
Leaving them to their discussion, I climbed into the carriage.
This was a rare opportunity to be alone with Lily, and I intended to use it to ask her so of the questions I’d been holding onto.
But I didn’t expect much.
Of course, my expectations were spot on.
Bathed in warm sunlight, Lily was leaning against the window, dozing off.
Beside her, Keros lay sprawled on its back, gnawing on a bone. When it noticed entering, it froze, still holding the bone in its mouth.
“…Can you understand human speech?”
Keros resud chewing on the bone, completely ignoring .
I attempted conversation several more tis but was t with the sa cold indifference.
It wasn’t clear if it genuinely didn’t understand or was simply pretending not to.
Either way, it was obvious that the creature didn’t like .
Still, I couldn’t help but admire Lily.
“Damn, she’s gorgeous.”
Even in the simple clothes of a commoner, she exuded an unmistakable air of elegance.
Her dark hair fell loosely around her delicate features, which were illuminated by the sunlight streaming through the window.
Her milky-white skin seed to glow, clear and flawless.
Though I’d seen countless beauties during my ti in the Blue Rose, her charm was entirely unique.
Unlike an elf’s ethereal allure, her beauty was striking and full of vitality.
It felt like she needed to cover her face just to avoid drawing attention.
Clatter—
The carriage rattled gently as it continued its journey.
anwhile, I could hear Lochter’s voice from the driver’s bench.
Apparently, his claim about wanting to discuss Divine Nas wasn’t a lie. The topic, as expected, was Resonance.
[Resonance – Target: Lochter Felice]
The ability granted to Karl Bastain as the Hero’s Companion.
It was a new discovery for , though one I could predict from the novel.
When Karl had served under the Mad Butcher, the Divine Na he’d gained had been Villain’s Companion.
Even then, he’d possessed a similar ability to share Resonance effects.
This ability, dismissed as minor at first, turned out to be absurdly overpowered later on.
The reason?
Divine Na lists grow over ti.
That was why the Mad Butcher had kept Karl by his side until the very end.
Now, Karl’s ability had transferred to Lochter the Hero, creating a new dynamic.
If Karl’s Divine Na effects influenced Lochter…
The synergy would likely be remarkable.
This was sothing I had imagined while reading the novel—
Karl’s compatibility with Lochter was far better than with the Mad Butcher.
While Lochter’s unyielding rigidity made him prone to breaking, Karl’s adaptability compensated for that flaw.
It was a partnership that balanced each other’s strengths and weaknesses perfectly.
I planned to delve deeper into this once both of them fully understood their Divine Nas.
For now, we continued our leisurely journey.
Lily snored softly, Keros slept soundly, and I closed my eyes to focus on the conversation outside.
Lochter and Karl, imrsed in their discussion, exchanged thoughts without pause.
At so point, however, their voices faded into silence.
Only the sound of the wheels turning filled the air.
Opening my eyes, I glanced outside.
“Of course.”
I clicked my tongue softly, turning my gaze to the scene before .
A village.
A small settlent of less than a hundred households.
And it was stained red with death.
The village square, a modest clearing, was piled high with bodies.
Not a single ard figure among them.
These weren’t soldiers.
They were simple villagers—farrs, rchants, won, and children.
Ordinary people, massacred in cold blood.
“…This is my fault.”
Lochter stood before the mound of corpses, his fists clenched tightly.
The ground was streaked with blood, evidence of people being dragged to their deaths.
Signs of looting, murder, and other unspeakable atrocities were everywhere.
Lochter’s gaze fell upon the lifeless bodies of a woman and child locked in a final embrace.
His head hung low, his face a mask of sorrow.
“If only I hadn’t co here…”
“This isn’t your fault, Lochter.”
“The pretext for this is mine to bear.”
And this was precisely why I had insisted he ride in the carriage.
The hunters searching for Lochter had used his presence as justification to terrorize the surrounding villages.
Calling them hunters was too kind.
Most of them were slave traders, barely distinguishable from thieves and murderers.
At first, they may have hesitated, but after witnessing the Blazer Twins, they realized they had no reason to hold back.
The brothers’ actions gave them full permission to unleash their brutality.
“There’s no one to bla for this but the Blazer Twins. They were the first to raid this place.”
The leaders of the tracking parties had undoubtedly started the pillaging, leaving the lower-ranking hunters to follow suit.
With both pretext and power on their side, they had gone on a rampage.
But Lochter wasn’t the type to shift bla.
He simply stood in silence, taking in the tragedy around him.
“I want to bury them.”
“There’s no ti.”
“This is important to .”
“And what about the other villages we’ll pass through? Are you going to bury every body you find?”
“…You think Kal won’t notice if we linger? He’s probably already searching for us with everything he has.”
Grind—
The sound of Lochter grinding his teeth reached my ears.
I couldn’t see his face, but I was certain it was twisted in fury.
“This is the work of slave traders.”
“More people were taken than killed, no doubt. And there’s only one place nearby where they could sell slaves—Blyer City.”
Lochter turned to look at slowly, his eyes bloodshot and filled with determination.
His expression made it clear: as a knight, he intended to take full responsibility for this atrocity.
“What do I need to do?”
“Rescue them, of course.”
“Beco the hero of Blyer.”
I picked up an old sword from the pile of corpses. Its edge was chipped, its blade dull from cutting down villagers.
Blood for blood.
I handed the sword to Lochter.
“This is how you’ll avenge them—and strike back at Kal.”
User Comments
0 comments from readers